BlackBerry Phone Catches Fire In Schoolboy's Bed And Scars Him For Life

BlackBerry Phone Catches Fire In Schoolboy's Bed And Scars Him For Life
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A schoolboy has been left scarred for life after a brand new BlackBerry Curve 9320 exploded in the middle of the night and set fire to his bed.

Kian McCreath, 11, from Coventry, ran from his room in the night as the melted plastic stuck to his leg, and his bed caught fire.

"I ran out of my room just screaming my head off and my mum came running up the stairs and luckily put out the flames," said terrified Kian.

Kian's mum Sarah, 39, was woken up by her son at around 2.30am on Sunday.

The phone, which belonged to Kian's 13-year-old brother Mason, had been taken off charge shortly before the explosion.

"It was about 2.30am and I couldn't sleep so I came downstairs," said Sarah.

"As I left my room I noticed Mason's phone on charge on the landing. I know the phone has an alarm he uses, so I unplugged it and plonked it on Kian's bed.

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"I thought nothing of it, made a cup of tea then I heard a really loud 'pop' sound. Kian started screaming at the top of his voice, shouting 'my bed's on fire!' It was just horrific.

"It was absolutely terrifying. The whole of his mattress and about a third of his quilt has been burnt away. I keep thinking what would have happened if I had been in bed and the phone had set alight on the landing?

"I worry that the house could have burnt down. I put out the flames with his brother's quilt. Kian was shaking. He was terrified. My son could quite easily have died. It sends a shiver down my spine to think what could have happened."

Kian was taken to University Hospital Coventry where he was treated for burns to his right foot and left leg.

Kian's dad Pete, 39, who bought the phone from a Vodafone shop in Birmingham, said: "I'm shaking just talking about it. If it had been any worse I could have my sons in boxes right now. Kian has burns to his lower legs where it exploded. It's left him mentally scarred as well. Kian won't even go back into his bedroom.

"I want them to recall all these phones in. That phone is dangerous and it needs to be tested. A lot of the kids are raving about that phone right now. My main concern now is the safety of other kids."

A spokesman from BlackBerry makers, Research in Motion, said: "We take claims of this nature very seriously and are investigating this matter as a priority."

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